Holiday off gives IRS break from scandal
IRS workers have to be happy about the Memorial Day weekend.
Liquor changes await Kansas governor’s approval
Happier days of drinking could be ahead in Kansas.
More red-light cameras may be headed to Kansas City
Red-light cameras do their job well by reducing traffic crashes and red light running.
Like Joplin, Mo., and Greensburg, Kan., Moore, Okla., should be be rebuilt green
Rebuilding Moore, Okla., , where a two-mile wide, EF-5 tornado on Monday ripped up the town, will start soon with help from the federal government and relief agencies. This is a time for Moore residents and city officials to plan to rebuild the city green.
Gordon Parks school must prove it merits staying open
Gordon Parks Elementary School is seeking a second chance to prove it has the educational firepower to benefit the low-income children. It now has to show it has the juice to make the turnaround a reality.
Shop in Kansas to help Sunflower State neighbors
By shopping in Kansas, Missourians and people in other neighboring states could help supplement Kansas revenues until Kansas grabs enough businesses from surrounding states lured by Gov. Sam Brownback’s tax cuts.
Violence grows unchecked in Middle East
Violence in Iraq continues to claim more lives as sectarian tensions worsen. The instability after the U.S. military pull-out in 2011 doesn’t bode well for Afghanistan when U.S. fighting forces are set to leave next year.
Obama makes Fox News look heroic
The Obama administration seems intent on being the villain in its second term while making Fox News and conservatives out to be heroic victims. That appears to be the outcome of the growing scandals that surround President Barack Obama and the White House.
North Korea seeks attention — again
North Korea seems to feel a need to constantly seek the world’s attention. When leaders in that destitute communist nation don’t get it, they blow something up to get heads to turn toward them.
McCaskill right to try to kill bonuses for elite group of federal workers
Priority should be given to a bill Sen. Claire McCaskill introduced Friday that would kill bonuses for members of the Senior Executive Service at a time when sequestration is cutting pay for most federal workers and hurting everyday citizens.
We’ve come a long way, but there’s a long way to go
Julia Hill, a civil rights pioneer and a former president of the Kansas City school board, cautions that people have to turn away from texting, social media and cellphones and talk with others. It is the only way problems will be identified and solved. Civil rights advances in the next 50 years will only occur if everyone is involved.
U.S. must do more to end sexual assault
President Barack Obama is right to insist that the U.S. military end the sexual abuse problem that has plagued the armed forces. But this isn’t just an armed forces problem. This is a major concern for all aspects of American society.
Sad closing for school named for black renaissance man, Gordon Parks
Gordon Parks Elementary School at 3715 Wyoming St. served many underprivileged children — 94 percent qualify for free or reduced lunches and 16 percent are special education students. But the school struggled unsuccessfully throughout its 13-year history to raise students’ academic performance.
U.S. economy stays afloat despite sinking eurozone
The pond and a steady Federal Reserve hand have helped the United States steer clear of the economic storm that Europe has endured for months. A recession continues to grip the European economy with high unemployment particularly in Spain, Italy and Greece.
Signal pole theft off I-70 causes problems
Scrap metal thieves have a new target: pedestrian crossing signal poles. hungry thieves stole 11 pedestrian-crossing signal poles on the Paseo at the ramps from Interstate 70.
Cash registers will feel pain from lower DUI limits
Federal efforts to lower the legal limit for a driver’s blood alcohol will seriously impair the happy hours that a lot of bars and restaurants use to attract customers after work, but overall, motorists and pedestrians will be better off.
Google’s promises in Kansas City area add to growing frustrations
Google Fiber now plans to light up Gladstone as one of its so-called fiberhoods, but a lot of the first fiberhoods are still waiting for the much-hyped hookup. And folks are getting angry and frustrated. There’s nothing worse than an unfulfilled promise.
Apology needed for use of racial slur
Steve Roberts as a Kansas State Board of Education member needs to apologize for his use of a racial slur.
Overconsumption of salt raises questions
Salt may not be as bad for consumers as previously thought, a new report says.
Powerball grows as more people wait in line, dreaming of wealth
Powerball tickets are hot items at stores nationwide.
College graduates catch a break with job market opening up
Jobs are starting to open up just in time for new college graduates stepping off the stage with their diplomas. The jobless rate has dropped to 7.5 percent, inching closer to 6.5 percent in October 2008, which is what it was when President Barack Obama was seeking his first term in the Oval Office.
More must be done to cut down on smartphone theft
New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is right to ask manufacturers of smartphones to do more to protect consumers from being victimized by thieves. Other states attorney generals should get in on that call.
Guns are nothing to play with in movie theater
What were the movie theater operators in Jefferson City, Mo., thinking when they frightened people with what appeared to be a real-life gun drama?
Mother’s Day shooting screams for need for gun control in U.S.
Mother’s Day shooting in New Orleans underscores the need for gun control in the United States.
‘Civil rights babies’ moved forward without a map
Judge Lisa White Hardwick takes personally “the fierce urgency of now” in Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech. She credits her parents, schools and the community that raised her to settle for nothing less than excellence. But she also is aware that if it weren’t for the civil rights movement, she wouldn’t have been able to get to where she is.
